FILE - In this Monday, Dec., 1, 2008, file photo, an Amazon.com employee grabs boxes off the conveyor belt to load in a truck at their Fernley, Nev., warehouse. Cyber Monday, coined in 2005 by a shopping trade group that noticed a spike in online sales on the Monday after Thanksgiving when people returned to their work computers, is the next in a line of days that stores are counting on to jumpstart the holiday shopping season. This year it is expected to be the biggest online shopping day of the year for the third year in a row. (AP Photo/Scott Sady)

IBM reported that online sales increased 26 percent on Cyber Monday, the online version of Black Friday that follows the retail extravaganza at brick-and-mortar stores.

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Early reports from ChannelAdvisor pointed to a big rise in online sales Monday, especially through San Jose-based eBay. The e-commerce company said that merchants using eBay to sell goods experienced sales growth of 57 percent early Monday from the same time in 2011, five times the growth experienced last year.

"The early eBay numbers are impressive. They put together an effective marketing plan across several channels this holiday season -- online, television and print," Morningstar equity analyst R.J. Hottovy told Reuters, later adding, "The numbers suggest they're having success reintroducing consumers to the 'new eBay.' "

eBay has been attempting to move away from a focus on auctions for used goods to being a marketplace where retailers and small businesses can hock their wares, with a specific focus on shopping through mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, the "new eBay" to which Hottovy referred.

"That mobile experience is continuing to grow," he said, noting that 24.2 percent of purchases were being made on iOS or Android devices, led by 10 percent on Apple's iPad.

eBay's stock price also continued to grow. The company has recorded strong profits all year and had hit share prices not seen since the CEO reign of Meg Whitman, a trend that continued Monday. eBay shares rose to their highest levels since early 2005, reaching as high as $51.78 in Monday trading before closing at $51.40, a daily gain of 4.9 percent.

E-tailing giant Amazon also experienced a rise in its stock price Monday, 1.6 percent growth that led it to close at $243.62.

Facebook and Yahoo hit important price levels on analysts' praise

Two Silicon Valley companies famed for their Wall Street struggles continued to show signs of life on Monday: Facebook and Yahoo both reached important prices in Monday's session as analysts' takes improved.

Facebook's stock has been on a tear lately thanks to a concerted effort to show investors and analysts that the social-networking platform can continue to grow new revenues. The Menlo Park company started an e-commerce platform called Facebook Gifts -- which added iTunes gift cards to its offerings Monday -- and refocused on advertising for its standard and mobile platforms.

Two analysts upgraded Facebook's stock Monday in response to the changes, though they also proffered warnings about Facebook's uncertain future. Bernstein analyst Carlos Kirjner promoted the stock to "outperform" with a $33 price target, predicting that Facebook's efforts will lead to revenues 9 percent higher than expected in 2013 and 7 percent higher than 2014 forecasts.

"Facebook remains a risky investment," Kirjner added. "If Facebook fails to get enough traction in the next 12 to 18 months," its "long-term growth prospects would dim."

BTIG Research analyst Richard Greenfield also upgraded the stock, from "Sell" to "Neutral," a surprising move from an analyst previously very bearish on Facebook's prospects. However, Greenfield pointed out the dark side of Facebook's moves: "Facebook is making a serious user experience mistake that will be problematic longer term," he wrote.

On the negative side, Google dropped 1 percent as it was wrapped up in an apparent attempt at a penny-stock scam that duped tech blogs and The Associated Press on Monday morning, and Sunnyvale chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices resumed its free fall with a 4.1 percent drop.

And the widely watched Standard & Poor's 500 index: Down 2.86, or 0.2 percent, to 1,406.29

Check in weekday afternoons for the 60-Second Business Break, a summary of news from Mercury News staff writers, The Associated Press, Bloomberg News and other wire services. Contact Jeremy C. Owens at 408-920-5876; follow him at Twitter.com/mercbizbreak.